Fluency

A young boy was taken to the hospital due to high fever; he died shortly after. Detectives were surprised forensics called them for what seemed out of their jurisdiction; actually there had been several other victims connected to a vaccine. Due to a shortage in flu vaccine, local doctors bought it from suppliers not so reliable. Detectives needed much time to reach the top of the pyramid; anyway a warehouse by the sea contained a lot of packages of the fake vaccine (it was actually a saline solution). The perp (Robert Sedgwick) was locked up and the defense attorney at first claimed the warrant was not regular, because of the wrong address written in the paper. McCoy, with the support of the new assistant, managed to get above this technicality, but at trial anything could happen.

"The Third Man": a classic movie quoted during trial by McCoy: he wanted us (as well as the jurors) to believe that the defendant considered people such as dots you can see from the top of a ferris wheel. His new assistant was not as stubborn as Southerlyn, she still has to learn.

This Law And Order episode which introduces Annie Parisse as Sam Waterston's new second chair has to do with the relevent and timely topic of an epidemic. There is a flu epidemic going on and a shortage of the new vaccine apropos for this strain.

A drug representative gets a quantity of bogus saline solution that is passed off as vaccine and 19 people die. Dennis Farina and Jesse Martin go up a food chain of criminality to find the source which is Robert Sedgwick.

Sedgwick is some piece of work as he disclaims all responsibility. Sam Waterston has a devastating cross examination using an analogy from the classic film The Third Man.

Sedgwick was truly a New York version of Harry Lime.

A lot of episodes in the 'Law and Order' franchise have at least one interest point. "Fluency's" is that it is the first episode of Alexandra Borgia. Personally did like her, though she didn't get enough time on the show to develop properly. Her personality may not have been as strong as Ross or especially Carmichael, but she at least had personality and a charming and professional one unlike Southerlyn, who inexplicably lasted a lot longer.

"Fluency" was a promising introduction to Borgia and is a solid episode overall. Solid enough to get rid of enough of the bad taste the ending of the previous episode "Ain't No Love" gave. It isn't great, with it being at its weakest in the final third, or one of the best episodes of an up and down Season 15. It is also not one of the worst. Somewhere around solid middle, and that it even addressed this touchy subject is worth applauding in itself.

So much is good. As always, it's a slickly made episode, the editing especially having come on quite a bit from when the show first started (never was it a problem but it got more fluid with each episode up to this stage). The music is sparingly used and never seemed melodramatic, the theme tune easy to remember as usual. The direction is sympathetic enough without being too low key on the whole.

The script pulls no punches yet is also careful to not be on too much of one side. The story is a little ordinary to begin with but it quickly becomes eventful and twisty without feeling rushed or muddled. Some nice tension here too and the moral dilemmas of the case are intriguingly and honestly handled. The performances are all fine, Sam Waterston is the regular standout but Annie Parrisse makes a charming first impression and personally liked it that she wasn't stubborn (which sometimes went too far with Southerlyn). Robert Sedgwick unsettles. The interaction is natural and has the right amount of tension.

It is a shame though that the final third brings things down. Do agree that it was too heavy handed, over spelled out and obvious and also that the cross examination was clumsily done and improbable. Just found it hard to buy that someone so cunning would act the way they did just like that.

Did think that it was on the ordinary side to begin, but that was not as big an issue. Also found the ending on the rushed side when trying to have too much information in too little time.

Concluding, solid episode and was actually to me very good indeed until it lost its way in the final third. 7/10.

Major murder felony charged.. the weakest felony reckless involuntary manslaughter aka typically accidental (sometimes driving) does require reasonable knowledge caused said death.. flu shots don't cure all, nor do flu shots guarantee no resulting death. Charges on the fake vaccines for all would never have risen above misdemeanor for any in this unbelievable episode that requires suspension of reasoning. Nearly unwatchable